Paia Fish Market South Side — Restaurant in Maui

First time visit. Order food in line, they give customers a plastic number to display on table for your delivered food.

Delicious food. Husband ordered blacken salmon, coleslaw and potatoes-rice side dish for $26? Salmon was cooked perfect, not dry out! Moist. That defines a veteran chef. Husband and I thought potatoes-rice was okay. He did not believe the rice was not Cajun flavored, I agreed.

I ordered, as posted in the reviews, an Obama sandwich. Not listed in menu board but they delivered a perfectly moist fish sandwich. Encased in the thick juicy segment of fish, NOT processed nor minced into a patty, was coleslaw, slice of tomato and dressing. Awesome! Messy to eat but worth every sticky finger.

I rarely find a deliciously moist fish, unless at a fine dining restaurant. At those prices, I expect a chef is skilled. With my Obama sandwich, I only have high praises on the quality, quantity, and the spices to prepare the fish.

The atmosphere ambience is casual. This eatery offers only outdoor dining. No issue with casual dining, nor dining outside.

Just be aware of the conditions of eating outdoors.

There is a set of tables next to the street. I do not particularly like vehicles passing by near where you eat.

While standing in line before ordering, I heard loud noises from the outside...I believe it was a motorcycle.

It does not be appeal to me, sitting close to passing vehicles, plus knowing possibly fumes and tiny particulates from vehicles may land on your food. Luckily my husband chose a table away from the street.

One other item that is seemingly common in Maui are roosters and chickens wandering around. Although they walked around our table area, one small child found it entertaining to chase or locate them.

I did not mind, but the server had to be on the alert for the small child, while he held large heavy plates of towering food and in our case a bowl of soup. I can imagine an accident...happening.

On the subject of soup. I am from California and love Boston (white) clam chowder who has has many opportunitiesto eat it.

The server returned, after my request, with another warmer bowl of soup. It was not much hotter than the first bowl I returned back.

Oh well, it was just pretty good. Not thick and creamy but had a decent taste. Price was $6. My husband ate it except for my few spoonfuls.

My Obama fish burger was $13. I did not want fries, when cashier asked. Likely additional fee for fries. It seems as if in the past few days of eating out, dishes include french fries. Ocassionally I like to eat them, but not daily. It worked out...the burger was quite large, filling me up. Delicious.

Free parking in the back side of many shops clustered together called the Kehei Kalama Village. Careful. Today many deep large puddles of water in parking lot. Once the sun set, even with lights, bit difficult to locate dry area to walk safely.

Overall we enjoyed our fish dishes, and would recommend Paia Fish Market restaurant in...

Wow, these guys bank! They're always busy busy busy! Luckily when we went in there were only 3 people ahead of us at peak lunch time. I guess given the success of their original location in Paia town, this second location was an easy decision, along with the third one in Lahaina that burned in the fires. I've tried their Seafood Pasta from the Paia location but always wanted to try their fish, so we stopped in to grab some lunch and headed to the beach.

ATMOSPHERE: They're located at the front of the bustling Kihei Kalama Village. It's a small takeout counter with covered outdoor communal seating.

MENU: Tacos, quesadillas, fish, shrimp, calamari, soup, burgers, pastas, fajitas, salads, apps, beer, wine. The fish selection varies from cheap to pricey, and plates/burgers are totally customizable with different preparation styles and choice of sides.

FOOD: Fresh Catch Plate This will always be my go-to dish as I love their fish done Cajun-style, along with their sides of Cajun rice, home fries and coleslaw. But, here's where the loss of stars occurred as the fish was overdone and dry. Come to think of it, my fish was just as parched on my last visit to the Paia location. What saves it is the tasty seasoning. Give me a moist fish and we'll talk again. Or could it be that I make a better version at home?

Seafood Pasta I've had this dish at the original Paia location but wanted to taste it again. Compared to other eateries that serve this, these guys do a great job at it. It's creamy, tasty and generously loaded with fresh seafood, though the pasta could be more al dente. Totally worth the price as it's a big portion.

SERVICE: Food service took a short 10 minutes or less for our 3 orders. Order, pay, take a seat and your food is brought out to you via number.

OVERALL: Probably the best, freshest fish you can get at a restaurant without severely damaging...

Many people recommended Paia Fish Market, so I was all set to give it a try. To be honest, this was the third place we attempted to have dinner, because we first tried 2 other poke places that were already closed. After we ordered in the line, we sat at one of the picnic tables outside. At first glance, I thought the menu came off a little basic, sort of like the Chipotle/Subway model, where you choose your main or base, and a particular style you want it prepared, and add toppings. However, I do appreciate places with simple menus, because they're less overwhelming. I thought it was a little touristy, but after digging into our food, I quickly understood why Paia is so popular. Everything was delicious!

$26 Ahi (8oz.) + Cajun Style - charbroiled in Cajun spices, includes coleslaw, tartar sauce, Cajun rice: I was curious to try the Cajun style preparation, since it was the most unique and seemed to have the most flavor, but I wasn't too sure about pairing it with ahi and could easily be overcooked. It turned out much better than I expected. The seasoning almost formed a crust on the outside, but was very juicy and tender and still pink on the inside. Even the Cajun rice was great, very fluffy and full of flavor. The tartar sauce and coleslaw was a nice contrast to the Cajun flavor and added crunch and texture.

$13 Fish Soft Tacos - fresh Maui corn tortillas, salsa, lettuce, tomatoes, includes coleslaw, house made tartar sauce, and fries: Two hefty tacos loaded with mahi mahi were plated over crisp coleslaw and crunchy fries. The juicy salsa went very well with the creamy texture of the fish.

This was delicious seafood that definitely exceeded my expectations, especially since it comes off looking like a modest fish takeout spot. If I ever return, I'd try the ono or opah fish, since I haven't seen those outside of...